What is Conflict Management? Definition, Types and Skills

Conflict is bound to happen when people interact, and the workplace is no exception. Different personalities, communication styles, work priorities, and organisational culture can all lead to conflict. However, effective conflict management can result in positive organisational changes and growth.

This blog will explore the nature of workplace conflict, its potential impact, and ways to manage and resolve disputes.

What is Conflict Management?

Conflict management strategically deals with disagreements or disputes using effective communication skills such as active listening and articulate expressions. It involves using the right skills, processes, and techniques to resolve contentious situations creatively. With diverse workforces becoming more common, disagreements are bound to happen. 85% of employees experience some degree of conflict. This makes conflict management an essential part of organisational life.

A hostile work environment can seriously impact employee productivity and well-being. HR is critical in creating a positive work environment by building inclusive cultures, emphasising employee relations, improving communication, mutual respect, and productivity, and equipping managers with the right skills to resolve conflicts efficiently.

Causes of Workplace Conflicts

Some of the most common reasons workplace conflicts occur are:

• Trust Issues: Trust is the foundation of any healthy workplace relationship. When trust is compromised, it breeds emotional conflict and disrupts workplace harmony. For example, if an employee feels their manager has breached their trust, it can lead to tension and hinder collaboration. Managers need to be transparent and honest with their employees to avoid perceived breaches of trust.
• Unresolved Disagreements: If disagreements are not resolved promptly, they can intensify emotions when they resurface. For instance, disputes about a project could lead to resentment and frustration if left unresolved. Addressing conflicts as soon as they arise and finding a solution for everyone involved is essential.
• Miscommunication: Errors and unclear messages can cause frustration and conflict. Miscommunication is a pervasive issue in most workplaces. For example, an employee misunderstanding an email or memo can lead to mistakes and confusion. It’s essential to communicate clearly and ensure that everyone understands the message.
• Personality Clashes: Differences in personalities can create challenges. Experts say human personalities are genetically determined, resulting in different preferred behaviours. For example, an introverted employee may clash with an extroverted coworker who prefers to work in groups. Recognising these differences and finding ways to work together effectively is important.
• Differing Values: Varied life experiences can lead to conflicting beliefs and decisions. These conflicts often reflect personal views, emotions and ethics. For example, an employee may have a different opinion on the company’s social responsibility practices than their coworker. It’s essential to respect everyone’s values and find common ground.
• Underlying Stress: The demands of modern life can contribute to stress-related conflicts. For example, employees dealing with personal issues outside of work may feel overwhelmed and stressed, affecting their performance and relationships with coworkers. It’s important to know these underlying stressors and offer support when needed.
• Ego Problems: The desire to be ‘right’ can fuel defensiveness, escalate disputes, and make them worse. For example, if an employee insists on their point of view without considering other perspectives, it can create tension and conflict. Practising active listening and openness to different ideas is essential to avoid ego problems.

Impact of Workplace Conflict

The impact of workplace conflict is as follows:

• Decreased Productivity: Conflicts can divert employees’ attention from their tasks, leading to delays and inefficiencies.
• Poor Morale: Constant tension and unresolved conflict can create a hostile work environment, causing employees to feel stressed, demotivated, and disengaged.
• Increased Turnover: Employees may choose to leave the organisation rather than continue working in a hostile or stressful environment, resulting in talent loss and recruitment costs.
• Damage to Relationships: Workplace conflicts can strain relationships between colleagues, eroding trust and collaboration within teams.

6 C’s of Conflict Management

The 6 C’s of conflict management are as follows:

• Communication: When conflicts arise, establishing clear channels of communication is essential. This allows all involved parties to express their perspectives, concerns and emotions. Active listening plays a crucial role in this process, demonstrating a genuine effort to understand the viewpoints of others. Effective communication helps prevent misunderstandings that can exacerbate conflicts.
• Collaboration: Collaboration is fundamental to conflict management, focusing on achieving outcomes that benefit all parties rather than promoting a winner-takes-all mentality. It involves exploring options, brainstorming ideas, and engaging in creative problem-solving to prioritise common goals. Collaboration fosters compromise and cooperation, facilitating the resolution of conflicts in a constructive manner.
• Compromise: Compromise entails finding a middle ground between opposing views, acknowledging that complete satisfaction for all parties may not be attainable. It needs a fair and balanced approach where both sides are willing to make concessions to reach an agreement. Compromise is valuable in conflict resolution when parties are willing to negotiate and compromise to achieve resolutions.
• Control: Maintaining emotional control is crucial in conflict management to prevent situations from escalating. Emotions can hinder effective communication and resolution efforts. Conflict management involves recognising and managing emotions to approach the problem rationally. Techniques such as deep breathing and taking breaks can help individuals maintain composure and navigate conflicts more effectively.
• Civility: Even during intense disagreements, treating others with politeness and empathy is essential. Civility promotes respectful and courteous interactions, which can help diffuse tensions and create an atmosphere conducive to conflict management. It involves refraining from personal attacks, name-calling, and disrespectful behaviour that can escalate conflicts. Instead, practising civility fosters a more constructive and civilised discourse, increasing the likelihood of active listening and collaborative problem-solving.
• Commitment: Commitment to resolving conflicts is essential for achieving lasting resolutions. It requires dedicating time and effort to address the issue at hand effectively. Parties involved in the dispute must demonstrate a commitment to finding common ground, implementing agreed-upon solutions, and ensuring their effectiveness through follow-up. Without commitment, conflicts may persist or resurface, leading to more significant issues in the future.

Conflict Management Styles

Some conflict management styles are as follows:

• Collaborating: Collaboration is a conflict management style that aims to achieve the best results by considering everyone’s needs. It involves finding a solution that benefits everyone, creating a win-win situation. Although challenging and time-consuming, collaboration is beneficial when maintaining relationships is critical, or the solution will have a significant impact. Collaborative approaches promote open communication and cooperation, leading to innovative solutions and strengthened relationships.
• Competing: The competing conflict management style involves insisting on one’s opinions or desires. This approach may be necessary for situations where moral principles dictate a specific course of action when there is limited time to explore alternative solutions, or when tough decisions must be made quickly. While it can resolve disputes efficiently, it carries a high risk of lowering morale and productivity and should be used judiciously.
• Avoiding: Avoidance is a conflict management style that seeks to reduce conflict by ignoring it, removing conflicting parties, or evading the issue altogether. While it can be effective as a temporary measure to gain perspective or buy more time, relying solely on avoidance can lead to unresolved conflicts festering and escalating over time. It should not be used as a substitute for proper conflict resolution, as delaying confrontation indefinitely can exacerbate issues in the long run.
• Accommodating: Accommodation involves prioritising the other party’s needs over one’s own to maintain peace. It may be appropriate when the issue at hand is of lesser importance to you or preserving relationships is paramount. However, balancing cooperation and assertiveness is essential to prevent resentment and undermine your interests.
• Compromising: Compromising involves finding a middle ground where both parties make concessions to reach an agreement. It’s often used when a time constraint or quickly reaching a solution is a priority. While it can prevent conflicts from escalating, it may also result in dissatisfaction or resentment if used excessively. It’s essential to use compromise judiciously and consider its long-term implications on relationships and outcomes.

Questions to Help Choose a Conflict Management Style

The questions to ask are as follows:

• How much value does the discussed issue hold for the two conflicting parties?
  To effectively manage a conflict, it is crucial to determine the value given to the person or issue involved. This will help choose the most appropriate conflict management style for the situation. For instance, if the person concerned is a client and the issue is minor, the organisation should give in.
• Are the consequences clear?
  It’s important to understand that consequences will always follow regardless of whether a party chooses to give in or stand its ground. Therefore, evaluating and determining these consequences is crucial to making a more informed decision.
• Is the argument with the time and energy spent on it?
  Prioritising is essential for efficiency and productivity, especially in a busy work environment. If a party comes across a trivial argument and has more important tasks, it’s better to give in and move on. However, if the issue is a question of morals, it is advisable to invest time and energy to resolve it and create a healthier workspace.

Valuable Skills Required for Conflict Management

The valuable skills needed for conflict management are as follows:

• Communication: The ability to express oneself politely and clearly when presenting ideas to persuade others.
• Discussion: The ability to be receptive to engaging in conversations, valuing differing opinions, and avoiding echo chambers by inviting diverse perspectives.
• Positivity: The ability to cultivate a constructive mindset by avoiding the blame game, accepting that everyone makes mistakes, and focusing on finding solutions instead of dwelling on past errors.
• Listening: The ability to actively listen without hastily drawing conclusions or making assumptions, allowing for a deeper understanding of other people’s perspectives.
• Impartiality: The ability to detach personal biases and emotions from the conflict, focusing on the issue to facilitate objective decision-making and resolution.
• Patience: The ability to be calm and composed, even in challenging or confrontational situations, to prevent unnecessary escalation.
• Facilitation: The ability to foster collaboration and cooperation among conflicting parties, guiding discussions towards a mutually beneficial solution.
• Mediation: The ability to impartially intervene and facilitate constructive dialogue between two conflicting parties, guiding them towards a mutually agreeable resolution.
• Assertiveness: The ability to state your opinion and rights confidently while respecting the views of others.
• Emotional Intelligence: Recognising, understanding and managing emotions to navigate conflicts effectively.
• Empathy: The ability to understand and acknowledge the feelings and perspectives of others, fostering mutual understanding and compassion.
• Open Communication: Maintaining transparent and honest communication, encouraging candid discussions to help resolve the conflict.
• Avoiding Criticism: The ability to present arguments respectfully without resorting to personal attacks or criticism of opposing viewpoints, creating an environment where everyone feels comfortable sharing their thoughts and ideas.
• Responsibility: It means taking ownership of one’s actions and decisions, acknowledging mistakes, and being accountable for consequences.
• Stress management: Coping with stress and anxiety, maintaining composure and clarity of thought during conflict resolution processes.
• Nonverbal communication: Using nonverbal cues, such as body language and facial expressions, respectfully to convey empathy and understanding during conflicts.
• Humour: Appropriately using humour to diffuse tension and lighten the mood, promoting a positive atmosphere conducive to finding solutions.
• Problem-solving: Employing analytical and creative thinking skills to identify and address the root causes of conflicts, seeking efficient and effective solutions.
• Perception: Developing good observational skills to understand the underlying dynamics and motivations at play, paying attention to details and being able to identify key factors that influence a situation. It helps better understand what’s going on and develop effective solutions.
• Decision-making: Making informed and timely decisions regarding managing and resolving conflicts, considering the potential impact on all stakeholders involved.

How to Manage Conflicts

The following steps help in conflict management:

• Be Aware of Conflict: Stay alert to any changes in the workplace’s atmosphere and any signs of conflict. Ignoring the conflict may worsen the situation later, leading to more severe issues.
• Take a Considerate Approach: It is crucial to remain calm and impartial when dealing with a conflict. Avoid any passive or passive-aggressive behaviour. Instead, use neutral language and focus on presenting the facts.
• Investigate the Situation: Before taking action, find out what happened, who’s involved, and how they feel. Identify the underlying causes and differing perceptions. Doing so, you will be able to understand the issue better and determine the best course of action.
• Decide on Action: After investigating the situation, determine the seriousness of the conflict and whether formal processes or legal consultation are necessary. Depending on the severity of the issue, it may require more formal action.
• Let Everyone Speak: Encourage open dialogue and ensure everyone feels heard and understood. Set ground rules to ensure everyone respects each other’s opinions and views.
• Identify Solutions: Create an open atmosphere and acknowledge emotions. Explore reasons for disagreement and seek common ground. Identify potential solutions that can benefit everyone involved.
• Implement Agreements: Once a solution is identified, ensure clarity and personal responsibility. Consider written agreements, if necessary, to ensure everyone understands their role and the solution’s outcomes.
• Evaluate Progress: Monitor the situation and address any recurring issues. Evaluating progress is essential to ensure the solution is effective and the conflict doesn’t reoccur.
• Prevent Future Conflicts: Learn from the conflict and consider training or development opportunities. Foster a culture of open communication and collaboration. Consider organisational conflict management processes or mediation if needed to prevent future conflicts from occurring.

Conclusion

Workplace conflict is common and can harm productivity. By implementing effective conflict management strategies and fostering a culture of open communication and respect, organisations can turn conflicts into opportunities for growth and positive change.

Frequently Asked Questions